EcoWaste Coalition is a public interest network of community, church, school, environmental and health groups pursuing sustainable solutions
to waste, climate change and chemical issues facing the Philippines and the world.

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31 August 2016

Analytical
Results of Four Samples of counterfeit Rubik's Cube from the Philippines

Manila, Philippines/Firenze, Italy.
Some toys that are designed to exercise the mind may
contain toxic chemicals from recycled
electronic waste, which can damage the central nervous system and reduce
children’s intellectual capacity.

The EcoWaste Coalition, a watch group on chemicals and wastes, aired this
observation following the announcement
of the results of a global survey on toxic chemicals in brain toys at a
scientific conference on persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in Firenze,
Italy.

Both OctaBDE and DecaBDE are brominated
flame retardant chemicals primarily used in plastic casings of electronic
products. These chemicals are known to
disrupt human hormone systems, adversely impacting the development of the
nervous system and children’s intelligence.

Four of the 10 samples of Rubik's Cube-like
toys imported from China that the EcoWaste Coalition bought from retailers in
Manila and shipped to the Czech Republic for laboratory analysis were found to
contain significant levels of OctaBDE and/or DecaBDE. One of the samples from the Philippines tested with the highest concentration of
OctaBDE among 47 samples from 16 countries, including European Union, Eastern
European and Southeast Asian countries.

Out of the 41 samples of puzzle cubes and six additional samples (thermo cup,
hair clip, hand band, finger skateboard,
toy robot and hockey stick), 40 samples (85%) contained OctaBDE at
concentrations ranging from 1 to 108 parts per million (ppm), while 42 samples
(89%) contained DecaBDE, a toxic chemical commonly found in electronic waste,
between 1 to 293 ppm.

OctaBDE is already banned under the Stockholm Convention on POPs, an
international chemical treaty ratified by the Philippine government in 2004,
while Deca BDE is expected to be banned when the POPs Review Committee meets in
September 2016.

“Puzzle toys similar to Rubik’s Cubes are supposed to promote children’s
intelligence, but the presence of brominated flame retardants from recycled e-waste
creates the quite the opposite impact
on children who play with them.
Recycling e-waste can save resources and energy, but it must be done in a way
that does not put banned toxic substances back into commerce, which can threaten
human health and the environment,“ explained Jitka Strakova, Coordinator of the survey from Arnika.

“Our discovery of banned chemicals from e-waste in common consumer products such as toys is
probably just the tip of the iceberg.
Considering the inadequate chemical safety regulations in place, it is
likely that these toxic substances are
being recycled into a range of products that
consumers are not aware of,“ said Thony Dizon, Coordinator of the
EcoWaste Coalition’s Project Protect.

“For the health of our children and workers, we urge our policy makers to grant
no recycling exemption for POPs such OctaBDE and DecaBDE. This dirty recycling, which often takes place
in low and middle income countries, is spreading poisons in recycling sites, in
our homes and in our bodies,“ he further said.

In 2009, the Stockholm Convention listed
PentaBDE and OctaBDE for global elimination, but the treaty still permits the recycling of materials
containing these toxic chemicals until
2030.

“As long as we allow the recycling exemptions, we will be unable to control the
flow of these dangerous flame retardants,“ said Joe DiGangi, Senior Science and
Technical Advisor of IPEN.

IPEN is a leading
global network of 700 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working in more
than 100 developing countries and countries with economies in transition. IPEN
works to establish and implement safe chemicals policies and practices to
protect human health and the environment. EcoWaste Coalition and Arnika are
active members of the network.www.ipen.org twitter: @ToxicsFree

Arnika
is a Czech NGO that seeks
to promote public participation in
environmental decision-making processes, reduce toxic substances and
wastes, and protect biodiversity. www.arnika.org,
www.english.arnika.org

29 August 2016

Some of the unnotified cosmetics banned last August 22, 2016 under FDA Advisory 2016-94.

The
EcoWaste Coalition, a chemical safety and zero waste advocacy group, urged consumers
to pay attention to the successive public health warnings issued by the Food
and Drug Administration (FDA) against unregistered cosmetics that may pose
potential health hazards.

In the months of July and August, the agency issued six advisories warning the public
against the purchase and use of 60 products that lack cosmetic product
notifications and whose quality and safety cannot be guaranteed by the FDA.

The EcoWaste Coalition provided the FDA with 20 of these non-compliant products,
including Jiachuntang Ban Gan Jing Qu Ban Shuang, a skin whitening facial cream
with high concentrations of mercury as screened by the group and subsequently confirmed
by the FDA through laboratory analysis.

Cosmetic products, prior to being placed into the local market, must be duly
notified with the agency by a licensed cosmetic distributor and/or
manufacturer, according to the FDA.

“We remind the public to reject personal care and cosmetic products that have
not undergone quality and safety verification by the FDA as these can pose
serious health risks to users and even non-users such as babies and young
children,” said Thony Dizon, Coordinator, EcoWaste Coalition’s Project Protect.

“Heed the FDA’s health warnings and save yourself from injury and harm. It’s better to be safe than sorry,” he added.

The government has warned that “if a cosmetic product has not been verified by
FDA as in the case of these unnotified products, the use of such products may
pose potential health hazards to the consuming public.”

“Potential hazards may come from ingredients that are not allowed to be part of
a cosmetic product or from the contamination of heavy metals such as lead and
mercury,” it explained.

“The use of substandard and possibly adulterated cosmetic products may result
to reactions including but not limited to skin
irritation, itchiness, anaphylactic shock and organ failure,” it added.

28 August 2016

A watch group for toxic chemicals today
cautioned parents and students against buying a cheap toy commonly sold outside
public elementary schools that contains high concentrations of lead, a
hazardous substance.

The EcoWaste Coalition aired the warning after finding
dangerous amount of lead in a toy ruler with Ninja Turtle characters. The ruler also doubles as a wrist band and
comes with a crayon eraser. It is sold
for P5 per packet. The product provides
no information about its manufacturer, importer or distributor.

The toy ruler-wrist band was found to contain 47,000
parts per million (ppm) of lead as per X-Ray Fluorescence screening conducted
by the group. No lead was detected on
the crayon eraser.

“As a precaution against potential lead exposure, we
advise parents not to allow their children to buy and use this toxic ruler that
also functions as a wrist band,” said Thony Dizon, Coordinator, EcoWaste
Coalition’s Project Protect.

The product is made of a flexible metal sheet that is
covered with a thin colored plastic wrapper with Ninja Turtle design.

Product examination shows that the metal sheet --- a
recycled roll-up tape measure --- is coated with a yellow paint, which
apparently contains lead above the regulatory restriction for lead in paint.

DENR Administrative Order 2013-24, also known as the Chemical Control Order for Lead and
Lead Compounds, sets a maximum allowable limit of 90 parts per million for
total lead in paint.

The same regulation prohibits the use of lead in the
production of toys as well as school supplies.

“Sooner or later, the plastic wrap will get torn with
frequent use exposing the lead-coated metal strip,” Dizon warned.

“Lead can enter a child’s body through the ingestion or
inhalation of lead-containing paint chip and dust,” he said.

According to the World Health Organization, “children are
particularly vulnerable to the neurotoxic effects of lead, and even relatively
low levels of exposure can cause serious and, in some cases, irreversible
neurological damage.”

The potential for adverse effects of lead exposure is
greater for children than for adults, because in children 1) the intake of lead
per unit body weight is higher, 2) more dust may be ingested, 3) lead
absorption in the gastrointestinal tract is higher, 4) the blood–brain barrier
is not yet fully developed and 5) neurological effects occur at lower levels
than in adults, the WHO said.

Primary prevention, or the elimination of exposure to
lead at its source, is the single most effective intervention against childhood
lead poisoning, the WHO further said.

Among other preventive measures, WHO has recommended the
phase out the use of lead in paints on a worldwide basis, and the elimination
of the use of lead in homes, schools, school materials and children’s toys.

The voluntary recall will
be conducted starting today August 26 until October 24, 2016 by suppliers MZM
Souvenirs and F Colors with McDonald’s full support and cooperation as
announced by Golden Arches Development Corp., the master franchise holder of
McDonald’s restaurants in the Philippines.

The recall was the outcome
of the EcoWaste Coalition’s chemical investigation showing lead in the
accessible substrate material of the black back pack as it reported to
McDonald’s Philippines and US last August 8.

Upon receipt of the
group’s notification, McDonald’s immediately contacted the bag supplier, MZM
Souvenirs, to halt production while also stopping the distribution of the said
bags as giveaway items.

The group’s investigation
also prompted the company to test other promotional products resulting to the
subsequent expansion of the recall to include McDonald’s red sling bags and red
bag tags supplied by F Colors. These items are no longer available in
McDonald’s stores.

“McDonald’s made the right
decision to promptly retrieve the lead-containing bags and tags as this is
necessary for children’s health and well-being.
We commend them for the measures undertaken to notify the public and
ensure the rapid retrieval of the recalled products for environmentally-sound
disposal without incineration,” said Aileen Lucero, National Coordinator,
EcoWaste Coalition.

Margot Torres, Deputy
Managing Director of McDonald’s Philippines, has thanked EcoWaste Coalition for
approaching the company with its concerns. ”Nothing matters more to us than the
safety of our customers. We have reinforced to our local supplier partners that
there must be absolute adherence to the high standards of safety that we uphold
at McDonald’s,” Torres said. “These recalled items have not met that standard.”

“We apologize for any
inconvenience caused, and we strongly encourage our customers to immediately
return the bags and bag tag, so we can have them replaced or refunded,” Torres
added.

As per McDonald’s advisory,
customers may opt to receive a new bag of a different material or ask for a
refund upon return of the bags. As for
the bag tag, customers will receive a refund.
As a gesture of goodwill, all customers who return any of the bags
and/or the bag tag will also receive a free food item and a birthday party
discount coupon.

The EcoWaste Coalition had
earlier alerted McDonald’s that the black back packs failed the maximum lead
limit of 100 parts per million (ppm) for lead in accessible substrate materials
as established by the US Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act.

Department of Environment
and Natural Resources Administrative Order 2013-24 (also known as the “Chemical
Control Order for Lead and Lead Compounds) also prohibits the use of lead in
the production of toys and school supplies, among other things.

Last August 19, the
EcoWaste Coalition and McDonald’s had a constructive meeting to discuss the
group’s concerns and the recall strategy for the affected items.

Unisilver Silver Dip comes free for every P500 worth of purchase in single receipt.

Totally unlabelled silver jewelry cleaner.

Partially labelled silver jewelry cleaner.

The EcoWaste Coalition, a toxics watch group,
urged mayors and local health and police
chiefs to crack down on vendors of silver jewelry cleaners containing the
deadly cyanide compound.

The group’s plea for action came on the heels of a recent
public health warning from the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) against
three brands of cyanide-laden silver cleaning products.

The FDA on August 16 warned the public against buying,
using and storing Silver Sparkle Flat Silver Dip, Unisilver Silver Dip and
Cleanse Silver (Copper) Cleaner “as these pose imminent hazards and danger to
both human and animal health” due their cyanide content.

“All local government units and law enforcement agencies
are requested to ensure that the above-mentioned brands are not sold or made
available in their localities or areas of jurisdiction,” the FDA Advisory
2016-088 said.

“Any delay in responding to the FDA’s request will mean
more consumers having access to this poison that had already fatally harmed
many people, including innocent children who mistook the clear liquid for
drinking water,” he added.

Yesterday, August 20, the
EcoWaste Coalition went to the same silver jewelry shops in a shopping
mall in Quiapo, Manila where the FDA got the said silver cleaning products and
managed to buy Silver Sparkle Flat
Silver Dip for P55 and Unisilver Silver Dip for P69. The latter is even offered free of charge for
every P500 worth of purchase in single receipt.

In addition, the group also bought a totally unlabelled
silver cleaner for P60 from a beads and accessories store in Villalobos
St. It also obtained a partially
labeled silver cleaner for P80 from a silver jewelry store in Carriedo St.

“We request Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada to go after the
stores selling these highly toxic products and revoke their business permit
outright to show that he means business when it comes to protecting the public
health and safety from cyanide poisoning,” Dizon said.

According to the FDA, “cyanide is classified as poisonous
which can be rapidly absorbed by the body through inhalation, ingestion and
dermal absorption.”

“It blocks utilization of oxygen in all organs and (is)
liable to cause serious injury to human health that may lead to acute poisoning
or death,” explained the FDA.

Responding to the rising number of cyanide poisoning cases due to the
accidental as well as deliberate intake of silver cleaning products, the
government issued Joint DOH-DENR Advisory 2010-0001 banning the sale of silver
jewelry cleaners containing cyanide and other toxic substances.

19 August 2016

As the Quezon City Day is celebrated today,
various environmental groups asked Mayor Herbert Bautista to drop a planned
joint venture with a Japanese company for a “waste-to-energy “ (WtE) facility.

The groups also urged residents to raise their objections to the City Council
through their elected councilors to thwart the plan that could turn QC into the
“waste incineration capital” of Metro Manila.

As published in the Nikkei Asian Review last Tuesday, Hitachi Zosen will
construct in Quezon City “a garbage incineration facility capable of processing
the waste of three million residents with a power plant able to pump out more
than 20,000 kW.”

The project’s estimated cost of around US$395 million (or P18.17 billion),
including initial investment outlay and operational expenses for 20 years, will
be regained through waste processing charges and electricity sales, according
to the article.

“We urge the QC local government not to go for this costly waste incineration
scheme, which the industry has re-branded, cashing in on of concerns over
climate change, as a WtE facility. There are far superior
environmentally-sound, sustainable and cheaper solutions for managing discards
that will not circumvent the ban on burning waste, while recovering resources,
saving energy, creating jobs and instilling ecological values among businesses
and households,” said Aileen Lucero, National Coordinator, EcoWaste Coalition.

These solutions are enshrined in Republic Act 9003, or the Ecological Solid
Waste Management Act, which provides for waste avoidance and volume reduction
through segregation at source, composting, recycling, reuse and other measures
excluding incineration, she said.

“The construction of this incinerator might be even used to justify the
continued dumping operations in Payatas since a landfill will still be required
for the toxic ash resulting from the combustion of discards,” said Joey Papa,
President of Bangon Kalikasan Movement, noting that some 30 tons of ash are
produced for every 100 tons burned. “To be blunt about it, WtE is a technology
Without Thinking of Everybody’s safety and public health at large,” he added.

“Incineration, euphemistically referred to as WtE technology, is not the answer
to our need for energy. It emits toxic dioxins and furans and burns
resources, which can otherwise be recycled or composted. It promotes the
generation of waste because the combustion chamber must be constantly fed with
waste. It is the most expensive energy source according to some experts,”
said Dr. Angelina Galang, President, Green Convergence for Safe Food, Healthy
Environment and Sustainable Economy.

“We stand by our position that 'waste-to-energy' and 'integrated waste
management systems' are just fancy names for incinerators, and not at all
clean, renewable or healthy. Incinerators go against the principle of
sustainability. Their toxic emissions can never be controlled once released to
the environment, therefore lethal to humans and damaging to the ecology,” said
Abigail Aguiilar, Detox Campaigner, Greenpeace Southeast Asia.

The P18.17 billion that will be needed to build and operate the incinerator
should be used instead to improve and expand QC’s existing waste prevention and
reduction programs, including ensuring the proper closure and rehabilitation of
the Payatas dumpsite, the groups insisted.

“For example, 11,647 barangay waste workers will be paid a minimum salary of
12,000 per month for 10 years, plus the annual 13th month pay,
to collect segregated wastes from households, sell recyclables to junkshops and
compost the organics. This in turn would allow Quezon City to achieve at least
70 percent waste diversion or more,” said Froilan Grate, Asia-Pacific
Coordinator, Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives.

To illustrate the other alternative uses for the colossal amount of P18.17
billion to be spent for the QC incinerator, the groups have come up with the
following calculations:

2. 1,817,000 to 3,634,000 Materials Recovery Facilities (MRFs) at P5,000
– P10,000/facility for rural barangays, and 36,340 to 363,400 MRFs at P50,000 –
500,000/facility for urban barangays; MRFs serve as depositories for
segregated discards that can be reused, recycled or composted to minimize the
volume of trash sent to a residual waste landfill.

3. 40,378 biodegradables shredder (7 Hp, 1.5 tons/hour) costing
P450,000/machine to cut up garden or farm waste and other organics into small
pieces to speed up the composting process.

4. 5,191,429 generic sewing machines at P3,500/unit that community women
can use to make reusable bags from fabrics, doy packs, flour and rice sacks and
other materials.

5. 2,795,385 pedicabs at P6,500/unit or 5,191,428 wooden carts at P3,500
/cart that itinerant waste recyclers can use for “bote-dyaryo” business.

6. 121,133 junk shops that will ideally need a start-up capital of
P150,000.

7. 3,634,000 low-interest loans at P5,000/person that will enable waste
pickers to venture into micro-enterprises to augment their
incomes.

The EcoWaste Coalition, an environmental and health watch
group, challenged manufacturers of personal care and cosmetic products (PCCPs)
to voluntarily terminate their use of plastic microbeads for the fishes’ sake.

The group specifically asked companies using
polyethylene, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate polymethyly methacrylate, nylon and other
plastic materials as microbeads in PCCPs to opt for non-polluting alternatives
instead.

“As part of their corporate social and environmental
responsibility, we urge manufacturers to switch to naturally biodegradable
substitutes to plastic microbeads as scrubbing components in PCCPs such as
facial cleansers,” said Thony Dizon, Coordinator of the EcoWaste Coalition’s
Project Protect.

“We need to stop polluting our rivers and seas in the
name of ‘personal care’ with these microplastics that can suck up toxic
chemicals, which are then pass into the fish who mistake them for food,” he
said.

The appeal came on the heels of a newly-released study
showing “evidence that plastic microbeads from personal care products are
capable of transferring absorbed pollutants to fish that ingest them.”

The study, conducted by scientists from RMIT University
in Australia and the Hainan University in China and published in the
Environmental Science and Technology Journal, showed that up to 12.5 percent of
polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) on microbeads from facial cleansers were
assimilated by fish following particle ingestion.

In the controlled laboratory experiment, the researchers
fed rainbow fish from Murray River, Australia’s longer river, with microbeads
from facial cleansers that were spiked with PBDEs.

PBDEs, which are used as flame retardant chemicals in
foam and plastic products including electronics, are known endocrine disruptors
with studies in animals indicating that these chemicals can disrupt thyroid
hormone balance and lead to reduced learning capacity, hyperactive behavior and
other neurological and developmental problems.

"We know generally that if someone eats a fish, they
risk eating any pollution that may be in the fish," stated Dr. Bradley
Clarke, lead investigator and environmental scientist at RMIT University, who
said that “microbeads should never have been in products in the first place.”

"We shouldn't have to wait one or two years for
these products to be banned, because in that time, billions more microbeads
will be released into the environment. It would be nice to see an immediate
ban, and the companies investing money into remediation costs,” she said.

To assist consumers in choosing products without
microplastics, the EcoWaste Coalition asked cosmetics companies to declare that
their products are 100 percent free of plastic microbeads and other plastic
ingredients that have replaced natural options.

The group cited the “Plastics in Cosmetics” fact sheet
published by the United Nations Environment Programme stating that “plastic
ingredients in PCCPs that are poured down the drain after use, cannot be
collected for recycling (unlike the packaging, which can be recycled).”

“The plastic ingredients do not decompose in wastewater
treatment systems, which can be lacking in large parts of the world. The
ingredients are emitted via raw sewage, treated effluents or with sewage sludge
applied as fertilizer (biosolids) on agricultural land, landfilled or dumped at
sea,” UNEP said.

“Given the associated potential risks of microplastics, a
precautionary approach is recommended toward microplastic management, with the
eventual phase-out and ban in PCCPs,” it said.

To address the problem with microplastics in PCCPs, UNEP
suggested that producers take the
potential impact of product ingredients on the natural environment into account
during the design phase and eliminate use of microplastics, and that consumers
should avoid buying products that contain such microplastics.

UNEP also recommended that governments should promote the
phase-out of microplastics in PCCPs, while underscoring the need for further
research to better understand the implications of nano- and micro-sized
plastics in PCCPs on human and marine ecosystem health, especially through
ingestion and chemical transfer through the food chain.

12 August 2016

A non-profit watch group promoting consumer
and environmental health commended a cosmetics manufacturer for offering products
that are free of parabens and plastic microbeads.

The EcoWaste Coalition lauded Intelligent Skin Care Inc. (ISCI), maker of the
Belo Essentials product line, for taking steps to remove parabens, which are
potential endocrine disrupting chemicals due to their ability to imitate
estrogen, as well as ocean-polluting plastic microbeads, from their products.

At a dialogue held yesterday between the EcoWaste Coalition and ISCI
representatives led by general manager Robby Sicam, the company confirmed that
materials used in their cosmetics formulations do not contain isobutyl paraben
and four other types of paraben banned under the European Union and ASEAN
Cosmetics Directives.

“Belo Essentials Body Bar and Lotion do not contain isobutyl paraben since 2009
as can be verified from the certificates of analysis provided by our supplier
Eurochemicals. This was even before the government advised manufacturers to
remove such ingredient by the end of 2015,” stated Sicam.

The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) through Circular 2015-008 banned isobutyl
paraben as well as benzyl, isopropyl, pentyl and pheny parabens and gave
manufacturers until December 31, 2015 to reformulate and initiate product phase-outs
and recalls.

Furthermore, ISCI told the group that they have altogether removed permissible parabens
in their cosmetics such as butyl, ethyl, methy and propyl parabens making their
full range of products paraben-free.

“We are satisfied with the explanation given by ISCI regarding the outdated
ingredient information on the product packs and recognized their ongoing effort
to correct it,” said Thony Dizon, Coordinator of the EcoWaste Coalition’s
Project Protect.

The EcoWaste Coalition had earlier disclosed that some
Belo Essentials products contain the banned isobutyl paraben as indicated on
the ingredient list.

As agreed upon with the FDA, the ISCI has embarked on an action plan to end in
August 2016 involving the “re-stickering” of product packs to correct the ingredient
information.

To the delight of the EcoWaste Coalition, the ISCI also confirmed at the
meeting that Belo Essentials have also already eliminated the use of plastic microbeads.

In January this year, the EcoWaste Coalition urged Congress
to enact a law that will forbid the manufacture of facial wash, shampoo,
toothpaste and other personal care products containing plastic microbeads, which
can pollute the oceans, harm marine life and threaten public health.

This was after US President Barack Obama signed the
Microbead-Free Waters Act on December 28 last year phasing out cosmetics with
added plastic microbeads, including those made from “biodegradable” plastics,
by July 1, 2017 and banning the sale of such products by July 1, 2018.

Plastic microbeads in personal care products go straight to the drainage system
and into water bodies and subsequently polluting the oceans with minuscule,
non-biodegradable particles that are then eaten by aquatic organisms who mistake them for eggs or
plankton, lamented the EcoWaste Coalition.

According to the International Campaign against Microbeads in Cosmetics, “the
microbeads used in personal care products are mainly made of polyethylene (PE),
but can also be made of polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET),
polymethyly methacrylate (PMMA) and nylon.”

As part of their ongoing advocacy to protect human health and the environment,
the EcoWaste Coalition is exhorting all cosmetics makers to go paraben-free and
plastic microbeads-free.

A non-profit group advocating for the safe management of busted or spent fluorescent lamps containing toxic mercury today urged the Department of Energy to put to use a costly recycling equipment that is just gathering dust in Taguig City.Through a letter sent to Secretary Alfonso Cusi, the EcoWaste Coalition pressed for the operationalization of the Lamp Waste Management Facility (LWMF) with mercury recovery that the DoE purchased in 2013 from MRT System International, a Swedish company, for US$1.37 million, inclusive of taxes and customs duties. The facility is a component of the DoE-led Philippine Energy Efficiency Project supported by a loan from the Asian Development Bank.“We hope that your office is one with us in recognizing the urgent need for the government to operationalize the LWMF and implement a practical system for the safe recycling of lamp waste to minimize mercury pollution due to the improper disposal of fluorescent lamps at the end of their useful life,” wrote Noli Abinales, President, EcoWaste Coalition. “Under your watch, we hope that the DoE will be successful in getting a qualified operator to run the LWMF at the soonest time possible,” he added.“The prolonged non-operation of the facility can take its toll on the multi-million peso equipment, while spent lamps continue to be arbitrarily disposed of like ordinary trash, contaminating human bodies and the environment with toxic mercury,” he pointed out.The DOE operated the facility, located at Bagumbayan, Taguig City, during the pilot phase. As described by the DOE, the LWMF is “a facility where all spent mercury-containing lamps shall undergo recycling to recover mercury and other by-products (to) avert residual mercury from entering the food chain through landfill leaching into ground water.”When the group visited the LWMF in September 2014, they were told that the facility should be up and running by December 2014.“We are now more than half-way to 2017 and we still see no functional facility that will safely receive and recycle our mercury-containing lamp waste,” said Abinales.In March 2014, the EcoWaste Coalition released a photo investigative report entitled “The Toxic Silence of the Lamps,” which documents the haphazard disposal of mercury-containing lamp waste in Metro Manila’s 17 local government units. The report can be downloaded here: https://sites.google.com/site/ thetoxicsilenceofthelamps/According to the report, “the indiscriminate disposal of busted or spent fluorescent lamps as common trash is not only polluting the surroundings, but is also exposing waste handlers, informal recyclers and the public to mercury, a potent neurotoxin, which can lead to acute and chronic intoxication even at low levels of exposure.”In the same letter, the EcoWaste Coalition urged the office of Secretary Cusi to issue a Certificate of Concurrence to the government’s ratification of the Minamata Convention on Mercury and to transmit the same to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). Signed by former DENR Secretary Ramon J.P. Paje in October 2013 at a diplomatic conference in Japan, the Minamata Convention seeks to protect human health and the environment by reducing mercury supply and trade, phasing out or phasing down mercury-containing products and by controlling mercury emissions and releases.Article 4 of the Minamata Convention provides for the phase-out by 2020 of certain products of interest to the DOE, specifically, compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) equal to or less than 30 watts containing more than 5 mg mercury per bulb, linear fluorescent bulbs - triband lamps less than 60 watts and containing greater than 5 mg, mercury, halophosphate lamps less than 40 watts and containing greater than 10 mg mercury, high pressure mercury vapor lamps, mercury in a variety of cold cathode fluorescent lamps (CCFL) and external electrode fluorescent lamps (EEFL).The Philippines has yet to ratify the Minamata Convention.- end-For more information about the mercury treaty, please visit http://www.mercuryconvention.o rg/

The EcoWaste Coalition, a non-profit watch group promoting consumer and environmental health, today urged the Intelligent Skin Care Inc. to remove from the market certain items from the Belo Essentials product line that contain isobutyl paraben, a banned ingredient.

The request came on the heels of the group’s market surveillance conducted from August 1 to 3, 2016 to determine the availability of Belo Essentials products that were recalled by the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) due to their isobutyl paraben content. The company should have recalled the products on or before 31 July 2016 as agreed upon with the FDA.

In a report sent to the Center for Cosmetics Regulation and Research on August 4, the group notified the FDA about the continued sale of Belo Essentials products with isolbutyl paraben as listed ingredient in 29 branches of 17 leading retail establishments in 10 Metro Manila cities, including Caloocan, Makati, Mandaluyong, Manila, Muntinlupa, Pasay, Pasig, Quezon, San Juan and Taguig Cities. The group provided the FDA with photos to support their claims.

“If these products are still available in leading retail establishments in Metro Manila, we presume that the same products are still being offered for sale in other parts of the country. Some of the recalled products are also being sold online,” stated Thony Dizon, Coordinator, EcoWaste Coalition’s Project Protect.

“We therefore urge the company to review the effectiveness of their recall strategy and to comply with the FDA’s product recall order without delay,” he said.

“Retail establishments should remove the recalled products off the shelves and have them returned to the company for environmentally-sound disposal,” he added.

The EcoWaste Coalition noted that it has also found a “paraben-free” Belo Essentials Moisturizing Whitening Body Bar with Nourishing Skin Vitamins (pink and blue box) during their market surveillance, indicating the company’s capacity to remove not only the banned isobutyl paraben but also the other types of permitted parabens from the product formulation.Last 20 April 2016, the FDA issued Advisory No. 2016-032 reiterating the ban on isobutyly paraben and four other types of paraben in line with the ASEAN Cosmetics Directive, which has added in November 2014 the five parabens in the “list of substances which must not form part of the composition of cosmetic products.” The FDA had given the cosmetics industry a grace period to comply that ended on 31 December 2015.According to the FDA, “cosmetic products found to contain any of the five identified banned ingredients pose potential health risk to the consuming public and therefore, shall not be allowed to be placed or to remain in the Philippine market starting 1 January 2016.”Parabens have been identified as endocrine disrupting chemicals based on evidence that they interfere and mimic hormones, particularly estrogen, which is the primary female sex hormone, the EcoWaste Coalition said.Studies have associated parabens in breast cancer, tumors of the uterus, abnormal development of the testes, infertility and other reproductive health problems, the group noted.-end-Reference:http://www.fda.gov.ph/advisori es-2/cosmetic-2/328036-fda-adv isory-no-2016-032

Additional Information:List of retail establishments where Belo Essentials products with banned isobutyl paraben are still on sale as of 3 August 2016:

01 August 2016

As the phase-out of lead-containing paints used for
architectural, decorative and household (ADH) applications looms, the EcoWaste
Coalition, a watch group on chemicals and wastes, reminded concerned
manufacturers to hasten their shift to non-lead paint production.

By virtue of the Department of Environment and Natural
Resources (DENR) Administrative Order 2013-24, paint manufacturers have until
December 31, 2016 to phase out lead in ADH paints.

“By January 1, 2017, lead-containing ADH paints will no
longer be allowed in the marketplace.
That’s just 22 weeks away. The
clock is ticking,” said Noli Abinales, President, EcoWaste Coalition.

ADH paints are typically used to decorate residential
houses, school buildings, day care centers and playgrounds, as well as
child-oriented products such as toys, school supplies and kiddie furniture like
baby cribs, study desks and tables.

“We are confident that most companies are seriously
hurrying through their paint reformulations not only to comply with the law,
but more so to make available safer paint products that will not result to lead
exposure hazard to vulnerable groups such as
young children, pregnant women and the workers,” he noted.

“We recognize the Philippine Association of Paint Manufacturers (PAPM) for its
indispensable role in promoting industry-wide support for the said policy,
which prohibits lead levels in paint above 90 parts per million (ppm),” he
added.

Abinales recalled that the EcoWaste Coalition in May-June
2015 received formal pledges from some paint companies confirming their
commitment to comply with the lead paint phase-out policy, including the
Andalucia Manufacturing Corp., FH Colors and Coatings Corp., Globesco Inc.,
H-Chem Industries, Inc., Super Globe, Inc., Times Paint Corp. and Treasure
Island Industrial Corp. The said
companies, except for Andalucia, are members of the PAPM.

Pacific Paint (Boysen) Philippines, Inc. and Davies
Philippines, the country’s top two paint makers, have already removed lead
compounds commonly used as driers or pigments in paint products ahead of the
issuance of DENR A.O. 2013-24.

Pacific Paint (Boysen) Philippines, Inc. and Davies
Philippines, Inc. have also successfully secured Lead Safe Paint® Certification
from SCS Global Services, a US-based third party certifying body, for their
Boysen, Nation, Titan and Virtuoso brands, and Davies brand, respectively.

“It makes sense for companies who have yet to finish
their shift to non-lead raw materials to switch to panic mode,” Abinales
suggested.

“We hope that not a single company will be left out in
the cold as the whole country celebrates the historic phase-out of leaded ADH
paints few months from now,” he added.

In the second quarter of 2017, the EcoWaste Coalition
will conduct yet another paint study to determine industrial compliance to the
phase-out of leaded ADH paints as stipulated in DENR A.O. 2013-24.

The group will release a report afterwards that will publicly
name compliant and non-compliant ADH paint products.

According to the DENR A.O. 2013-24, “any violation of the
requirements specified in this Order shall subject the person(s) liable thereof
to the applicable administrative and criminal sanctions as provided for under
Sections 41 and 43 of DAO 1992-29 and DENR Memorandum Order No. 2005-003
(Prescribing Graduated Administrative Fines Pursuant to Republic Act No. 6969
and DAO 1992-29).”

The EcoWaste Coalition will continue to assist the
government in monitoring compliance to the said policy in order to prevent
childhood lead exposure via the ingestion or inhalation of lead contaminated
dust or soil from lead-based paint and other sources.

According to the policy statement issued by the American
Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Council on Environmental Health last June 2016,
“lead toxicity results in substantial, population-level effects on children’s
intellectual abilities, academic abilities, problem behaviors, and birth
weight. “

“No effective treatments ameliorate the permanent
developmental effects of lead toxicity. Reducing lead exposure from residential
lead hazards, industrial sources, contaminated foods or water, and other
consumer products is an effective way to prevent or control childhood lead
exposure,” the AAP said.

About Me

is a public interest network of community, church, school, environmental and health groups pursuing sustainable solutions to waste, climate change and chemical issues facing the Philippines and the world.